Look, if you're Gold Coast supporter who watched the first half on Sunday, you would have thought you were watching a coronation, not a footy match. The Suns were absolutely pummelling West Coast at People First Stadium, heading into half-time with a 62-point lead and putting the game completely out of reach.
But here's the thing about Round 1 of 2026: West Coast didn't roll over. After getting thoroughly dismantled in the opening 24 minutes, the Eagles came out fighting in the second half and proved that Coach Andrew McQualter has something worth building with, even if the scoreboard told a brutal story. Gold Coast won 131 to 72, but the margin doesn't tell the full tale.
The most heartening part for the Eagles faithful was watching 25-year-old Milan Murdock, who was only added to the rookie list in late February, come out swinging in his debut. Murdock had won three best and fairest awards for East Fremantle in the WAFL after averaging 27.4 disposals and 7.8 tackles per game in 2025. On Sunday, he showed exactly why West Coast had moved quickly to sign him. Murdock has been on the radar of AFL clubs for years but now gets a shot at the next level after sustained dominance in the WAFL. Playing with the energy of a young bloke who knows this might be his one chance, he kicked two goals and collected 22 disposals in a debut that gave McQualter plenty to work with.
Six new Eagles made their debuts with midfield tough nut Deven Robertson and key defender Tylar Young pulling on the blue and gold alongside first-round draftees Willem Duursma, Cooper Duff-Tytler and Josh Lindsay, plus Murdock. It was a youth injection that had all the makings of a disaster against a Suns outfit riding the crest of a wave after demolishing Geelong the previous week.
The Suns were genuinely terrifying in that first half. Christian Petracca continued his dominating start to life at the Suns with three first-quarter goals, while Ben King kicked five majors. Alex Davies, Daniel Rioli, Jy Farrar, Jake Rogers and Ben Long all kicked goals in an impressive 84-point first half. Gold Coast was setting the joint alight, and McQualter's inexperienced side looked completely lost.
Then the Eagles did something unexpected. The Eagles responded in the third term with a 5.4 quarter for the visitors, compared to the Suns' 3.2, that staved off the threat of Suns records falling. It wasn't pretty, but it was determined. Jake Waterman kicked three goals and had the better of Andrew, while Elliot Yeo kicked a quickfire double in the third term in his injury comeback. Having Yeo back was a bonus; the veteran midfielder's experience steadied the ship when things looked dire.
Harley Reid led the Eagles with 23 disposals, showing again why he's meant to be the future of this club. Deven Robertson collected 17 touches, 12 tackles and five clearances in a tough contested midfield.
Now, let's be honest. West Coast is still years away from being competitive, and one 59-point loss to the Suns doesn't change the reality that this mob has work to do. The Eagles won just once last season, and expectations around the traps are rock bottom. But you've got to hand it to McQualter and his group for showing some spine when they could have easily packed it in at half-time. That's the kind of character that builds a foundation.
For the Suns, though, it was another statement of intent. They looked set to rewrite club scoring records before taking their foot off the gas late, much like they did against Geelong. If they can maintain that intensity for four full quarters, they'll be mighty hard to stop. But West Coast's second-half fight proved one thing: this Eagles rebuild might just have some teeth to it.